FLORENCE, Italy — Fiorentina’s squad visited Italy’s national training centre in Florence on Wednesday to pay their respects to the body of captain Davide Astori.
The 31-year-old Astori was found dead in his hotel room on Sunday after a suspected cardiac arrest before Fiorentina was set to play an Italian league match at Udinese in northeast Italy.
Astori’s body was brought back Wednesday to Florence and taken to the soccer centre on the outskirts of the city. His funeral takes place Thursday at the Basilica di Santa Croce in Florence, Fiorentina’s home city.
The bus carrying the Fiorentina squad was greeted with applause before silence fell as players walked off and into the centre’s gym to see Astori’s body.
Astori’s Fiorentina and Italy shirts were laid next to the closed coffin, along with wreaths from Fiorentina, the Italian soccer federation and other football clubs.
Hundreds queued to pay their respects before the doors were opened at 4:30 p.m. local time for a six-hour period.
Other footballers to visit included Roma captain Daniele De Rossi and a delegation from Torino formed of Andrea Belotti, Lorenzo De Silvestri and Adem Ljajic.
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